Morel Ultimo 12

High-end drivers and component systems are the monikers Morel is known for. When sound quality is discussed, Morel is more than likely to be named and with good reason. Over the years, Morel has maintained a rock steady position amongst the upper echelon of sound quality drivers for both the car and home audio environments through continuous development and ingenuity. One of their latest creations, the Supremo 6 component set, has won numerous accolades internationally for its extraordinary performance. Morel is now attempting to recreate the same success in the subwoofer market with their latest technological development, the Ultimo.

The Ultimo line is a clear departure from the Israeli company's previous subs. After years of development, the engineers at Morel feel they have come up with a subwoofer that not only possesses tonal accuracy and superb frequency response, but also has the ability to produce high-output levels when called for. Previously, customers often selected Morel for their quality midranges and tweeters but looked elsewhere when selecting a subwoofer to complete their system. Morel intends to break this trend with the introduction of the Ultimo line by providing customers with an ultimate sound quality/SPL subwoofer.

Performance Driven
An external cardboard sleeve around the packaging carton displays a couple of high-quality photographs including an exploded CAD drawing detailing the various technologies within the driver. Out of the carton, I immediately spotted the extraordinary black woven cone. In true Morel fashion, the cone is free of any self-branding logos or slogans, something that seems sort of taboo judging from the plethora of "logo-fied" subwoofers on the market. The cone is a composite mix consisting of a paper base with a carbon-fiber overlay. With their extensive knowledge in the development of sound quality drivers, Morel engineers selected paper because of its natural tonal characteristics. Paper alone provides insufficient mechanical strength; therefore, carbon fiber was used to provide stability during high output. Additional cone strength was implemented with the convex design of the dust cap to minimize deflections during high excursions. A butyl-rubber surround extends along the circumference of the cone. The surround is designed to work in synchronization with the spider as part of the driver's Progression Field Symmetry (PFS) system. The PFS system is engineered to maintain alignment and linearity of the cone assembly and voice coil over longer excursions.